This story was originally published by ArtsATL.
The Atlanta Jazz Festival’s 31 Days of Jazz this month has begun at locations throughout the city.
The series is highlighted by a May 26 concert at Symphony Hall with Russell Gunn and the Royal Krunk Jazz Orkestra. The concert will feature his song suite “The Blues And Its People” that debuted in February to much acclaim at the Apollo Theatre in New York City.
The song suite celebrates the 60th anniversary of Amiri Baraka’s groundbreaking 1963 book “Blues People: Negro Music in White America,” which argued that blues music is the foundation of American music. Baraka considered blues and jazz and gospel an ongoing community narrative of a people and their adaptation to adoption of American life.
Joining Gunn and his band will be special guests Warren Wolf, Jazzmeia Horn, Miles Griffith, Leon Timbo, Weedie Braimah and Jessica Care Moore.
The 31 Days of Jazz series will feature concerts at the Atlanta Botanical Garden, Atlantic Station, Colony Square, Grant Park, the High Museum of Art, at MARTA stations and other locations. The full line-up is available at atljazzfest.com.
The free three-day Atlanta Jazz Fest will be held at Piedmont Park May 27-29. It will be headlined by the Jazz At Lincoln Center Orchestra with Wynton Marsalis, Stanley Clarke N 4Ever and Ledisi.
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Two long-time fixtures with the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra Chorus are retiring.
Jeff Baxter, who has been with the chorus for 40 years and on the ASO staff for 35 years, is stepping aside from his role as the chorus’ administrator. Baxter was honored by the ASO at its concert Thursday night.
Also retiring is Stephen Reed, who has sung with the chorus for 53 years. Both began their tenure during the era of the late music director Robert Shaw, who built the chorus into one of the world’s finest.
Norman Mackenzie, the director of the chorus, called Baxter part of the group’s heart and soul in a tribute printed in last week’s program. “He has left an indelible legacy that will continue to guide and inspire us,” Mackenzie wrote. “Bravissimo, Jeff, and thank you from the bottom of our hearts for a job superbly done. You are simply irreplaceable.”
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The DeKalb Symphony Orchestra has named Megan Williams as its new executive director.
“Megan’s solid experience in music education and music management, including organizing and creating curriculum and concert repertoire and helping communities engage in the arts, makes her an invaluable addition to the DSO family,” Paul Bhasin, the orchestra’s music director, said in a press release.
Williams is the executive director of the Metropolitan Youth Symphony Orchestra of Atlanta, a part-time role she will continue, and she teaches private clarinet lessons in addition to being a music educator at various area schools.
“I’m thrilled to begin working for an organization that has served the DeKalb community and broader region for the past 58 years,” Williams said. “With such a rich history and long-standing contribution to the musical community in Atlanta, I cannot wait to get started promoting our great musicians and performances.”
The largely volunteer symphony is in residence at the Clarkston campus of the Perimeter College of Georgia State University.
Credit: ArtsATL
Credit: ArtsATL
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